S1 E14 ADHD After Dark: Trick or Treat, ADHD Women Unmasked

It’s Halloween, the dopamine’s high, and the masks are off, literally and figuratively for ADHD women. In this bonus “After Dark” episode, Jess and Jeannine get unmasked about ADHD, dopamine, chaos, and why Halloween feels like home for neurodivergent brains.

From glow-stick jokes and dirty puns to executive dysfunction and dopamine hits, this episode celebrates the freedom, laughter, and chaos that come when the masks finally drop. It’s explicit, ridiculous, and weirdly validating exactly how AOI does Halloween.

If you’re a late-diagnosed ADHD woman who’s ever loved the ritual, the chaos, or the permission to be someone else for a night, this one’s for you.

    In this episode

• Why ADHD women love Halloween (and what dopamine has to do with it)

• Masking, unmasking, and the joy of pretending

• Chaos, costumes, and permission to be loud

• The AOI kind of “After Dark” unfiltered, funny, and a little filthy

⚠️ Explicit Content Notice

This bonus episode is NSFW in the best way. Headphones recommended candy optional.

00:00 – The Neurodivergent Super Bowl Why ADHD women love Halloween chaos, creativity, and permission to be “too much.”

01:01 – Hot Glue Guns and False Starts Jess and Jeannine stumble through intros and burn jokes literally.

01:20 – Masking Meets Costume How pretending becomes power when ADHD women turn masking into play.

02:23 – Legalized Dopamine Candy, chaos, and serotonin Halloween as an executive-function win.

03:40 – Glow Sticks and Dirty Jokes From glow-stick daydreams to “After Dark” laughter unfiltered ADHD joy.

04:23 – The Only Holiday That Doesn’t Demand Happy Why Halloween feels safe, nostalgic, and sensory-friendly for neurodivergent brains.

06:10 – Belonging in the Weird Freedom, rebellion, and self-recognition the night our brains and the world align.

 

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Why do neurodivergent people love Halloween so damn much?

(00:03):
Let's be honest.
Halloween is basically the neurodivergent Super Bowl.
One night a year when being too much, too creative or too intense is not only allowed,it's the assignment.
Right?
Like suddenly we are not over the top.
We're festive.
This is Angry on the Inside, the podcast where two ADHD coaches with a lot of feelingstalk about everything from emotional regulation to hot glue guns.

(00:32):
Hot glue burns.
I'm assuming you meant a hot glue gun is what you're getting burned from.
because the hot glue burns could be something completely different.
We don't know.
You know, people are into different things.
No judgment,
Let me try one more time.
I know it's hard.
This is Angry on the Inside, a podcast with two ADHD coaches that aren't doing a podcastabout coaching.

(00:59):
That was good.
we aren't doctors, we aren't therapists, but this content for the specific bonus showhopefully won't need any.
I'm not doing good.
we have a lot of feelings to talk about everything from emotional
regulation to hot glue guns.

(01:20):
And today we're celebrating the chaos that finally makes sense Halloween.
freaking love Halloween.
Wee!
Alright, so what's awesome about Halloween?
It's masking meets costume and God knows we are all good at the masking.
it kind of flips it on its head and we get to pretend to be someone else and that'ssuddenly socially appropriate.

(01:44):
And costumes are safe self-expression, I'm not dressing up as a witch.
I am the witch.
You're just finally seeing it.
Hahaha uh
Let's think about it.
We've been masking all year.
Now it's literally a costume.
Finally a day where pretending to be someone else actually makes sense.

(02:07):
we can express every hyperfixation at once.
No one bats an eye if you mix
Cottage Court Witch, Pirate Captain, and Taylor Swift Errors all in one.
It's called a theme.
Candy is literally legalized dopamine.
A socially sanctioned sugar rush that hits all serotonin buttons.

(02:31):
No shame, no spreadsheets.
Everything's loud and weird, but now it's scheduled.
The brain can relax knowing the chaos is on the calendar.
Social rules make sense for one night.
Say trick or treat, get a reward.
That's executive function.
Function.

(02:51):
Executive function, it's a thing.
That's a, right?
That's what it should be called.
have you ever heard of executive function?
Say trick or treat, get a reward.
That's executive function.
We can all get by.
We're not the weird ones tonight.

(03:11):
The entire world joins us in being a little odd, a little intense and fully themselves.
God, I love that.
Costumes are a hyper-focused playground.
So you get the crafting, the sewing, the gluing, the painting.
It's, it's a dopamine goldmine,
You only stop when the hot glue runs out.

(03:32):
It's a night of clear scripts, because we all know what to say.
There's no social decoding, and it's like introvert heaven with closed sticks.
I love glow sticks.
Don't you love the crack of a glow stick?
That is like an ESMR daydream.
I was going to say wet dream, but I'll say daydream.

(03:52):
Halloween dream.
That'll be like angry in the inside after dark.
Right?
Angry on Keep in mind, everyone, these episodes are marked as not for kids, adults onlyand explicit.
So Spooky Season is a whole mood cycle decorating Lighting candles, sensory regulation,horror movies, Maybe?

(04:16):
What's the word?
Let's try it again.
Horror movies.
Controlled sensory exposure.
it's the only holiday that doesn't demand happy.
You don't have to be happy.
You can be weird, quiet, dramatic, anxious, even giddy, but it's all part of your theme.
God, I love a good theme.

(04:38):
Nostalgia feeds the pattern seeking brain.
Pumpkin carving, favorite movies, same decorations every year.
know, ritual is regulation.
and it's themed overwhelm, however it feels manageable.
Costumes, chaos, candy overload, sure, but at least this kind of chaos is fun.

(04:58):
Identity play without judgment.
You get to try on a persona or an aesthetic or a gender expression.
No one questions it.
That's freedom.
hyper fixations, get applause.
Obsessed with bats?
Go feral.
Love spooky history, educate the block.
Everyone just thinks you're into the vibe.

(05:19):
It's the only time we can be dramatic in peace.
Go big, be extra, commit to the bit.
Finally, no one tells you to tone it down.
And if they do, they can go the fuck home.
They just think you're super creative.
Dopamine to anxiety ratio.

(05:39):
It's a chef's kiss.
Anticipation, lights, planning, love the planning, candy, all dopamine.
Predictable outcomes, keep the anxiety quiet.
We love a good ritual.
Pumpkin guts, candles, costumes, movies.
It's sensory, familiar, grounding, and relatable.
Although I'm not a fan of the pumpkin guts.

(05:59):
It kind of grosses me out.
I don't mind when my hands are in the guts.
It's when they come out of the guts and the air hits them and they start to get thatsticky.
Yeah, not cool.
We get to belong in the weird.
The whole world joins our wavelength of one glorious night of overstimulated joy.

(06:20):
It's organized rebellion.
You get to break the rules, but with structure.
Again, we love that controlled chaos.
it's a rebels safe space.
and we see ourselves in the monsters
Because sometimes the misunderstood, overthinking, passionate creature is kind of us.
So yeah, it's not just the candy.

(06:41):
It's the one night our brains and the world are finally on the same page.
Everybody have a safe, happy, fun Halloween.
Be yourself and remember to give grace to everyone else the rest of the year so thathopefully they'll figure out how to give it to us.